1. Field of the Invention
The invention is in the field of moldings for covering a longitudinal member of an automobile front fender to rear fender, such as a rocker panel or sill below the automobile doors, the molding including a molding panel substantially conforming with the automobile body and including a panel front end segment engaging the automobile front fender and a panel rear segment engaging the automobile rear fender. More specifically, the invention addresses the problem of joint gaps formed between the molding panel and the automobile body at the panel front upper edge and rear upper edge.
2. Description of the Related Art
In automobile molding panels of this type, which respectively serve to cover one of the longitudinal members or beams extending along the side of the automobile between the edges of the fender openings, the attachment to the body occurs at a number of fastening points, of which the positions are determined by bore holes and other connecting elements. Due to allowed variations within tolerances occurring during the manufacturing of parts and directional variations introduced during assembly, joint gaps are formed when attaching the molding, which are disturbingly visible over the length of the molding and particularly at the end sections. Since as a rule the sheet metal of the rear fender is rigidly welded to the longitudinal member or as the case may be door frame or sill, a separation gap comes to exist above all in the joining area between the lower area of the front fender which is not fixed to any door frame and the upper edge of the attached molding. The allowable variation or field of tolerance extends here primarily in the vertical and transverse directions of the automobile. In order to prevent a non-aerodynamic or warped attachment, the known longitudinal moldings are frequently produced in multiple pieces, wherein separate end sections separated along the door edge are fastened in a time consuming and expensive manner. The covering over of the separation gaps is accomplished using separate trim strips or ornamental moldings, which are mounted on their own pre-formed fastening points and of which the edges project over the fenders and the cover part. The principle disadvantage associated with this approach, aside from the lack of form integration, is in the increased manufacture and assembly costs.